Long & Short Reviews
Cassie has heard that Abel is pretty much the last resort for shifters looking to join an alpha. After being expelled from her own pack for being too large, she’s determined to fit in and be accepted by Abel’s pack. She didn’t want to turn Feral and be hunted down. Far from turning her away, Abel is excited by the challenge Cassie presents him. Strong and an incredible fighter when pushed, she is everything and more Abel could hope for in a woman. Cassie and Abel clash deliciously as they try to come together, but surely only one of them can come out on top? I found this to be an intense and emotional paranormal story. I liked that I didn’t feel as if I was missing big chunks of back-story – being #9 in a series is always a daunting place to start – but at no point did I feel like I needed to catch up or felt like things were going over my head. I was also a little worried by the title. “Bullied” had implications that I wasn’t sure I’d enjoy, but I was relieved to find that Abel wasn’t a bully in an abusive or macho-alpha-man type of way. He knew, firsthand, how difficult it was to be an outcast, to be weak, and so he insisted on all his pack being strong, being able to fight and defend themselves – no matter the repercussions. I still feel somewhat like “bullied” might have been a poor choice of word for the title, but I was very relieved that nothing abusive or over-the-top came through in the story. I really enjoyed Cassie’s character. I found her complicated, interesting and quite relatable. I loved how she had enormous strength and power, but had just been cowed by her previous pack into not wanting to relish or admit any of it. And while I feel Abel’s tactics might not be to everyone’s taste, the author did an amazing job in my opinion with not just explaining exactly where Abel’s mind and intentions were, but carrying me willingly along for the ride. Because I understood exactly where Abel was coming from I could appreciate it. There is plenty of steamy sex in the second half of this story – but I enjoyed the chemistry and attraction between Abel and Cassie from the start. Personally I enjoyed that there was a lot more plot than simply Abel and Cassie coming together and fitting together in the pack. This helped give the story a feeling of depth to me that I really enjoyed. The sex is slightly kinky – more about control than other BDSM elements – and while it might not be to everyone’s tastes I found it well written and not too over the top. A different and interesting story I enjoyed both Abel and Cassie’s characters and really enjoyed the plot. A good book I can easily recommend.